Previews and Predictions for the Egg Bowl: No. 12 Ole Miss at Mississippi State

OXFORD, Miss. — It’s here, Egg Bowl week. Ole Miss and Mississippi State have taken the field against each other 119 times dating back to the first meeting in 1901, and the Egg Bowl trophy has been awarded to the winning team since 1927.

Ole Miss is seeking to avenge the 24-22 loss suffered in last year’s Egg Bowl when the Rebels’ two-point conversion attempt failed. With a victory over State, Ole Miss would reach 10 regular-season wins for the second time in the last three years, a feat not accomplished in the regular season in school history before the arrival of Kiffin. A win in both the Egg Bowl and a postseason bowl game would give Ole Miss 11 wins — something never before accomplished in the program.

Mississippi State, on the other hand is fighting for bowl eligibility. Last week, the Bulldogs defeated Southern Mississippi to reach the 5-6 mark. The win is the first after Mississippi State moved on from first year coach Zach Arnett. The program promoted Greg Knox as interim head coach. Knox has had previous stints as an interim coach at Mississippi State and Florida. Knox also spent time as an assistant at Ole Miss from 1995-1998.

The Rebels enter the contest at 9-2 overall and No. 12 in the latest College Football Playoff Rankings. Last week, Ole Miss defeated the UL-Monroe Warhawks 35-3. While the Rebels only held a slight 7-3 lead at halftime, they came out and scored 28 unanswered points and kept ULM from scoring seven.

Mississippi State Scouting Report

Before defeating Southern Miss last week, the Bulldogs had lost their prior three games. This year under Zach Arnett, Mississippi State had put a larger emphasis on the run game and they looked to find more balance in their offense than under the late Mike Leach.

The overall offensive production, however, has dipped as Mississippi State is averaging 330.9 yards of total offense this year — nearly 60 yards fewer per game than last year. The Bulldogs have spent a few games this season without quarterback Will Rogers and running back Jo’quavious Marks due to injury, but both returned for the game against Southern Miss.

The State defense has two key pieces to be on the watch for in Jett Johnson and Nathaniel Watson. The duo has a combined 232 total tackles. They rank No. 1 and No. 2 in total tackles in the SEC, as Johnson has 117 while Watson has 116.

They also have a combined 26.5 tackles for loss on the year.Johnson ranks 25th nationally in that category with 14.0 total on the season. Watson has been productive in the pass rush as he is 8th nationally with 10.0 sacks per game.

For a more in-depth look at Mississippi State take a look at Zach Moreth’s article here.

Now let’s get into some predictions!

Previews and Predictions

Once again, we will get predictions on this game from our esteemed panel of sports writers. Check them out at their links below:

Zach Moreth — The Rebel Walk
G rayson Weir – BroBible
Kam Wicker – The Rebel Walk
Caleb Salers – SuperTalk Mississippi
Tyler Komis – Inside The Rebels/247Sports
TJ Oxley – The Rebel Walk

Game Details

- Kickoff: Thursday, Nov. 23rd 6:30 PM CT
- TV: ESPN
- Radio:
  - OleMissSports.com
  - Memphis: WHBQ-AM 560
  - Oxford: WOXF-FM 105.1
  - Jackson: WFMN-FM 97.3
Betting Lines (as of Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.)
- Ole Miss: -10
- O/U: 54.5
- Ole Miss Moneyline: -385
- Mississippi State Moneyline: +300

Predictions

Zach Moreth – The Rebel Walk

Ole Miss 24, Mississippi State 21

Prediction: Ole Miss will come out of the gate hot as they usually do, but will struggle to sustain their efficiency in the passing and running game due to several recent injuries on the offensive line. It will be a hostile environment in a game where literally anything can happen. Wide receivers Jordan Watkins and Dayton Wade need to attack the middle of the field and expose the State linebackers in coverage. If Jaxson Dart plays with confidence and poise, I believe the offense and defense will both do their jobs to give the Rebs a win.

X-factor: offensive line

Kam Wicker – The Rebel Walk

Ole Miss 34, Mississippi State 24

Prediction: One of the most-heated rivalries in football is predicted to be lopsided this year. However, I don’t think that will be the case in this one. I’m expecting a hard fought “war” in the words of Rebel linebacker Ashanti Cistrunk. With Will Rogers back at quarterback for State and offensive analyst Greg Knox serving as the interim HC, expect to see a close one for most of this Thanksgiving Day game.

X-Factor: Quinshon Judkins

After a underwhelming performance by the offensive line and rushing attack against ULM, look for the Rebels to try and get Judkins going early. He is just 67 yards shy of his second straight 1000+ yard season.

Caleb Salers – SuperTalk Mississippi

Ole Miss 42, Mississippi State 20

Highlighted by a big performance from Quinshon Judkins to amass 1,000 rushing yards for a second consecutive season, the Rebels will strike early and often to take down their in-state rival. The All-American running back will post over 150 yards on the ground and multiple touchdowns to lead the way for Ole Miss to reclaim the Golden Egg.

X-factor: Quinshon Judkins

Grayson Weir – BroBible

Ole Miss 38, Mississippi State 13

Prediction: Mississippi State fans do not appreciate Will Rogers as much as they should. It is a shame that his team is so terrible this season because he can really sling it and will find passing lanes against Ole Miss on Thursday. The Rebels defense will shut down any attempt to run the ball, but Rogers will connect on a few deep balls to get the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. With that being said, it won’t matter. Ole Miss is a far superior team and the Rebels are playing angry after last year’s loss. I expect this one to be over by halftime. There is no reason that Mississippi State should hang around. Jaxson Dart will have a short week to get healthy, but the shuffled offensive line will have more time to mesh. They will have no issue getting push against a bad defensive front, which will allow more than enough time to go through the reads. It will also give Quinshon Judkins and Ulysses Bentley plenty of room to run. Everybody has a big game. Ole Miss wins big. (With that being said, this is the Egg Bowl and nothing ever goes according to plan…)

Tyler Komis – Inside the Rebels

Ole Miss 31, Mississipi State 17

The Rebels have some serious questions to answer as far as their offensive line goes. If they show improvement from Saturday, they should be in good shape to prevent their rivals from going bowling and notching their second 10-win regular season in three years.

X-factor: TE Caden Prieskorn

TJ Oxley – The Rebel Walk

Ole Miss 31, Mississippi State 21

It’s the Egg Bowl. It’s a rivalry game. It’s going to be weird. As those above me have mentioned, Ole Miss has some questions on the offensive line. We’re going to see how the Rebels adapt and how they play a rivalry game against a State team that is fighting for bowl eligibility. Expect State to emphasize the run in Will Rogers’ second game back in action. The Bulldogs will try to control the pace but they don’t have the firepower; Ole Miss does. As long as Ole Miss can protect Jaxson Dart and not allow the State pass rush duo of Johnson and Watkins to get home, expect the Rebels to get up and keep the lead in this one.

X-Factor: Ole Miss Offensive Tackles

TJ Oxley

TJ Oxley is the Vice President of Operations and the Director of Community Relations for The Rebel Walk. He is also the Director of Basketball Content and Senior Basketball Writer. He has over five years of experience providing in-depth analysis of college basketball through multiple platforms. A former MBA graduate of Ole Miss, TJ started with The Rebel Walk in 2019.